Playing dance music to cost $6,000 more a year

(July 9/09) The Neighbouring Rights Collective of Canada (NRCC) has introduced a proposal to hike the royalty fee charged to restaurants, bars, pubs and nightclubs that offer dancing.  NRCC is proposing that the fee increase by a minimum of $6,000 annually – but some establishments could see the fee skyrocket by as much as $30,000 per year. 

This fee increase would be levied in addition to other royalty fees charged for playing dance music.  NRCC represents performers and engineers of sound recordings while SOCAN, the Society of Composers Authors and Music Publishers, also collects a royalty for dance music.  Under NRCC’s proposal, the new fee would be ten times higher than the royalty fee charged by SOCAN – an absurd move given that SOCAN’s catalogue of music is 50% bigger. 

CRFA will be presenting against this proposed fee hike in a hearing before the Copyright Board of Canada, arguing that given the narrow profit margins faced by many restaurants and bars, many may be forced to stop playing dance music altogether.

You can add your voice in calling on the Copyright Board of Canada to put a stop to the exorbitant cost of music royalties for dance music by signing and faxing this petition (PDF). 

For more information on how to fight this unfair fee, please call David Harris in CRFA’s Toronto office at 1-800-387-5649 or email dharris@crfa.ca.